This Master’s thesis is about the public library development in a rural district, in this case Bergunda, a large rural district in Kronoberg’s County in Småland in Sweden, existing 1952 – 1970. The main question is; how the public library develops in Bergunda large rural district 1951-1970. The main question is divided up in sub-questions: the district uniting in 1952 and 1971; personnel; lending; library housing and the public library structure. In 1952, there is one public library, Bergunda public library, and four study circle libraries. Three of them are in Gemla: ABF, SLS, NTO, and one in Bergunda: SLS. The study circle libraries became part of the public library around 1960. When the study circle libraries become part of the public library, an increased numeral of book-loans could be observed. The public library gets new premises in various places in the district. The big question in the district is about the premises. Many of the premises were not adapted to their purpose. The solution was to house the library in the new school building. This solution can certainly have had signification when Öjaby became the first integrated library in Kronoberg’s County. It happened just after Bergunda became a part of the Växjö district. This Master’s thesis focuses on archive material in the form of reporting of proceedings and similar. This material is sent to and kept in Växjö community record office and Kronobergsarkivet. / Uppsatsnivå: D

The purpose of this Master’s thesis is to describe and analyse the development of the public and the study circle libraries in the district of Kolbäck during the period of 1913-1954. The factors important for the library development described in sub-questions are: financing, locality, staffing, stock of books, book-lending level and uniting district effects. I use a hermeneutic interpretation model of interaction between the parts and the wholes, between reasons and results. This research leans mainly upon material which is sent to be deposited in archives in Hallstahammar, Västerås and Grängesberg. The public library in Kolbäck was established in 1914 as a reconstruction of an older facility. The first study circle library was opened the year before. In the following years four branches and six study circle libraries were established. Those last mentioned belonged to Arbetarnas bildningsförbund (ABF), Godtemplarorden (IOGT), Nationaltemplarorden (NTO), Sveriges kristna bildningsförbund (SKB) later Sveriges kristna studieförbund (SKS) and Svenska landsbygdens studieförbund (SLS). In 1943 two branches were handed over to Hallstahammar due to changes in community boarders. After 1952 four branches were added from Rytterne and Säby, but there were also opened two new book lending stations. The economic conditions changed in the late forties that set in favour the public libraries. As a result many of study circle libraries were closed down and their book collections were handed over to the local public library. This was a development which was at the time encouraged by the Swedish state. Through the whole period there were only part-time librarians employed in Kolbäck.

The aim of our Master´s thesis is to investigate the development of the different libraries in the former communities of Flisby and Lofta during the former part of the twentieth century. We ask the following questions:How did the libraries in Flisby and Lofta develop between the years of 1905 and 1952?How can we understand the libraries’ dependency of funding of different kinds? We have used case study as a method, and we have adopted a source criticism approach. We have mainly used our local archives and among other things we have investigated various sorts of protocols, annual reports, auditor’s reports and the accounts that were sent to the Board of Education. We have also visited the Government Archives, located in Stockholm. We have worked with the theory of Geir Vestheim, the cultural/political triangle, but we have modified it so that we only use two of the three corners of this triangle, and these are the economical/political system and the producers of culture and the disseminators or mediators of culture. We use Vestheim’s model of the different fields of tension between the economical/political system and the mediators of culture as well. We do this in order to see how the different libraries and the people involved in their maintenance were dependant of various kinds of funding, and to see what kinds of roles the people running the libraries played. We have come to the conclusion that the field of tension has increased, as the governmental regulation has grown stronger.